Dover qualifying: Johnson on pole, Gordon 10th

DOVER, Del. (Sept. 25, 2009) -- Jimmie Johnson earned his second pole position of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season during Friday's qualifying session at Dover International Speedway. Johnson, who earned the pole earlier this season at Watkins Glen (N.Y.), circled the one-mile concrete oval in 22.878 seconds at roughly 157 mph to score his second career top spot at Dover. Johnson enters Sunday's race ranked second in the driver standings and with the benefit of having the first pit stall. "There's so much time to be gained on pit road, and the fact that you only have to go a few short feet to cross that camera line makes all the difference in the world," said Johnson, who also started from the pole position in September 2007. "I'm very proud of this team." Jeff Gordon will line up seventh for the 400-mile event, earning his 18th top-10 starting spot of the season. Gordon, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, is ranked 10th in the driver standings. Mark Martin, the points leader in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, qualified 14th during Friday's session. Martin will be making his 750th Cup start on Sunday. Dale Earnhardt Jr. will roll off the grid 24th in his No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet. Race coverage for Sunday's event starts at 1 p.m. ET on ABC, and the green flag is scheduled to drop at 2 p.m.